Sputnik is live from Vientiane, Laos, where Russia’s top diplomat Sergey Lavrov is holding a press conference following the ASEAN Summit.

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❗️ASEAN countries are interested in Russia’s proposal on Eurasian security, Russian FM Lavrov said at a press conference following the ASEAN Summit.

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❗️Western countries escalate confrontation by deploying new weapons in the Asia-Pacific region - Lavrov

Russian FM Lavrov's other key statements at the press conference following the ASEAN Summit:

🔸 Western countries are escalating confrontation in the region, deploying new weapons in the Asia-Pacific;

🔸 Russia is concerned about US and South Korean plans carry out joint nuclear planning;

🔸 Moscow hopes ASEAN understands the danger of the possible deployment of US long-range missiles in the Asia-Pacific region;

🔸 Russia wants the IAEA to use its authority in the region due to AUKUS’ presence.

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❗️Russia will not capitulate to Ukraine, all the goals of the special military operation will be achieved - Russian FM Lavrov

China's foreign minister informed Lavrov about his talks with Ukrainian FM Dmytro Kuleba, but Beijing’s position on Ukraine remains unchanged, according to the Russian foreign minister.

"I do not listen to what Kuleba and Zelensky say, including about the prospect of negotiations, they both often say directly opposite things," Lavrov said.

"I do not think it is necessary to comment on the numerous ideas [for a peace settlement] that have now sprung up like from a cornucopia in conditions when the West realizes the futility of counting on Russia's defeat and when the West increasingly realizes the worthlessness of Zelensky and his regime,” the minister added.

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❗️Lavrov will meet with South Korea's new foreign minister in Laos on Saturday, Russia’s FM says

Sergey Lavrov will discuss US maneuvers around the Korean Peninsula at meeting with his South Korean counterpart Cho Tae-yul.

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🔸 ASEAN countries are interested in Russia’s proposal on Eurasian security, Russian FM Lavrov says following the ASEAN Summit

🔸 Collapse of Western civilization and Christian culture in full swing at Olympic Games in Paris

🔸 Sputnik infographics. Bitcoin has all chances to serve as universal currency

🔸 EU's transfer of revenue from Russian assets to Ukraine: A 'liberal democracy' test amid geopolitical tensions

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Another ‘good job’ by Olympics Committee: South Korea was wrongly introduced as North Korea

South Korea protested on Saturday after a gaffe during the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games in Paris, during which its athletes were mistakenly introduced as North Koreans, forcing the Olympic organizers to issue a “deep apology.”

A boat carrying the South Korean team along the River Seine during the Olympic opening ceremony was introduced by English announcers as the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. The same announcement was heard when the North Korean delegation passed by.

“We have also asked the Foreign Ministry to file a serious complaint to France at the government level,” South Korea's sports ministry said. “The Korean Sports and Olympic Committee immediately asked the Paris organizing committee to prevent such cases from happening again and will file a formal protest. The committee will also meet with the IOC.”

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❗️Russian troops liberated the village of Lozovatskoye in the Donetsk People's Republic – Russian Defense Ministry

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Donald Trump says Democrats successfully committed a coup against President Joe Biden while speaking at a summit hosted by Turning Point Action.

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❗️ Ukraine lost up to 540 military personnel, four armored vehicles and a number of field artillery pieces due to the Yug Battlegroup's actions

🇷🇺🪖 More statements from the daily briefing of the Russian Defense Ministry on the progress of the special military operation in Ukraine:

▪️ Russia’s Sever Battlegroup defeated five Ukrainian brigades over 24 hours, the AFU's losses amounted to up to 165 military personnel due to the grouping’s actions;

▪️ The Russian Armed Forces destroyed two electronic warfare stations and a Ukrainian warehouse;

▪️ Units of the Russian Armed Forces' Tsentr grouping defeated the formations of six Ukrainian brigades, repulsed three counterattacks during the day. Ukraine’s losses in the Battlegroup’s zone of responsibility amounted to 425 military casualties;

▪️ Russia’s Vostok Battlegroup destroyed up to 125 Ukrainian;

▪️ Russian air defense shot down ten HIMARS rockets and 81 UAVs throughout the day

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For 2.5 years, around 15 thousand foreign mercenaries have fought in the ranks of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. A third of them have died, according to former lieutenant colonel of the Ukrainian Intelligence Service (SBU), Vasily Prozorov.

Earlier, Russian hackers released a database of foreign mercenaries who are fighting on the Ukrainian side in the conflict with Russia.

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Russia marks Day of Remembrance for Child Victims of the War in Donbass

On July 27, Russia commemorates the child victims of the Donbass war, which was launched by the Kiev regime in 2014 following the coup d'etat in Ukraine.

The day of mourning was established by a decree from Denis Pushilin, head of the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR), on July 11, 2022. Exactly 10 years ago the Ukrainian Armed Forces launched a massive attack on the center of Gorlovka, the DPR, killing 22 civilians, including four children.

"From 2014 to the present day, at least 1,427 children have suffered at the hands of Kiev executioners in the Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics," Russian Foreign Ministry Ambassador-at-Large on the Kiev Regime's War Crimes Rodion Miroshnik told Sputnik.

"Of these, at least 307 have died and 1,120 have been injured. Additionally, more than 120,000 Russian children in the frontline zone have had their rights to education and healthcare violated due to the criminal acts of the Kiev junta."

Between February 2022 and May 2024, at least 178 children died in Donbass, according to a report by the Russian parliamentary commission. Over the past ten years Western countries have completely ignored the suffering of Donbass civilians, while thousands of children have grown up without ever knowing peace.

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Italian journalist Angelo Giuliano asked Russia for asylum after seeing pictures from the Olympic opening ceremony:

"I am asking Russia to grant me asylum, I don't want to be part of this shit-show," he said on his X account.

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Israeli forces reportedly blew up a water reservoir in the Tel al Sultan area of Rafah, Gaza. However, there has been no official confirmation of the report yet.

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Biden to announce Supreme Court reform plans, including amendments to Constitution

US President Joe Biden plans to unveil a proposal on Monday to “dramatically” reform the Supreme Court, Politico reported, citing sources familiar with the matter.

The proposal is thought to entail term limits for Supreme Court justices, an ethics code, and a constitutional amendment limiting presidential immunity for US presidents and other Oval Office officials. The latter is a response to the court’s July 1 ruling in a case brought by former POTUS Donald Trump that presidents are immune from prosecution for “official acts” during their tenure.

As president, Biden has long resisted calls to reform the Supreme Court, but the change of heart is apparently intended to score points for Kamala Harris, who has just succeeded him in the presidential race. The move could “consolidate support” within the party, Politico reads.

Harris is weaker than other potential Democratic candidates in terms of political experience, experts claim, adding that her poor performance as vice president and her complete lack of foreign policy experience make her a questionable candidate for participation in the US presidential election.

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Obama was likely promised 'benefits' for Harris endorsement regardless of election outcome – Wall Street analyst

Barack Obama endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris for president on July 26, even though a source close to the Biden family claimed Barack doubts her ability to beat Donald Trump, as per the New York Post.

"The Obamas likely received substantial assurances from Harris that, in the event of victory, Barack would play important roles guiding and selecting key players in the federal government," Wall Street analyst and investigative journalist Charles Ortel told Sputnik.

The analyst believes that the Obamas were promised "benefits" in case Harris loses, too. "In exchange, the Obamas will bring money and voters, though I fail to see them closing Kamala's yawning enthusiasm gap. In fact, whenever and should Kamala appear with either Obama, she will come off weaker and inauthentic by comparison," he said.

Prior to Obama's belated endorsement of Harris, some US political commentators and lawmakers suggested that the real game behind Barack's hesitation could be aimed at pushing Michelle Obama's candidacy for the Democratic presidential nominee at the party’s August 19 convention.

Despite the Obamas' backing and the corporate press' claims that Harris has almost erased the gap with Trump in national polls, her victory is not a done deal, according to the analyst.

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Democracy in full glory: how US media corporations and Harris split Biden's campaign spoils

It appears that ailing Biden's campaign was used by some as a source of financial bonanza, according to Wall Street analyst Charles Ortel.

"National campaigns burn through enormous sums especially on advertising," Ortel told Sputnik. "Media corporations are key beneficiaries of this spending so it seems that editors and 'journalists' are not driven to identify and explain such obvious conflicts of interest. Another factor is that very few candidates spend much of their own money on campaigns. So, the temptation to live large on the campaign trail (flying private and the like) is overwhelming."

Biden's campaign had spent $243 million through the end of June, according to FEC records, and continued to spend even after some liberal donors refused to continue funding following Joe's deplorable performance during his debate against Trump. The setback did not stop Biden’s team from buying a whopping $35 million in ad time in July, according to Bloomberg.

This raises questions whether his team was fully aware of his imminent health decline while burning through the money, according to Ortel.

"Who decided to shade the truth about Biden and then to treat him as a figurehead and who, actually, makes key decisions in the Biden administration?" the analyst asked.

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